Reviews for Exploring the Bancroft Library The Centennial Guide to Its Extraordinary History, Spectacula...

The average rating for Exploring the Bancroft Library The Centennial Guide to Its Extraordinary History, Spectacula... based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2012-04-01 00:00:00 James Oconnell A neat little book about a truly fascinating subject. The author is a physicist with first-hand experience of some of the people and places described. The book is written in an engaging, informal way, as if you were chatting with the author. My only real complaint about this book (if it could be called a complaint) is that the first part is mostly about the history of the discovery of nuclear fission, and you have to get about 70% through the book before the star of the show appears in any detail. I would have liked to have read more details on the crystal structures and chemical reactions of plutonium but the book was a bit too short for that. Some of the references might be worth tracking down for more detailed information. In truth there are not very many books dedicated to plutonium’s history or its physical and chemical properties, so this was welcome learning experience.

Review # 2 was written on 2007-10-26 00:00:00 Frederic Dussault "Like everything connected with plutonium, there are complications" (98) Complications abound in this brief, not overly technical history. Human relations, atomic behaviours, the first atomic arms race... It's really quite amazing what people can do when they think that they other guy is going to kill them first. Fun, informative little read.